Diet and Nutrition Dr. Betül Sanrı of Istanbul University’s Çapa School of Medicine Hospital warns against the risk of “re-feeding syndrome,” which can set in when one has been avoiding low-GI foods for a long period of time.

“A person on a low-carbohydrate, high-protein diet suffers from a drastic rise of insulin in the blood when they consume high-carbohydrate foods. The rise of insulin triggers a fall in glucagon and ketone levels, which causes extreme retention of sodium and water and a dramatic uptake of potassium and magnesium by the body’s cells. It may cause congestive cardiac failure and cardiac arrhythmia, although rarely. This is called refeeding syndrome, which may prove fatal.”